Li Ji also fell silent. He asked Li Chengqian to be wary of Fang Jun, because he was afraid that Fang Jun would use his power to reform and shake the foundation of the empire in the future. But until now, except for abolishing the military system of the government in Youtun Guard and replacing it with a recruitment system, Fang Jun had no other transgressions. The moment.
How can the emperor be wary of things that others have not done yet?
"The people can follow it, but they cannot know it. This is the norm for kings to govern the world throughout the ages. The king formulates political orders, ministers are responsible for implementing them, and the people obey orders, and the world is governed. If you are not satisfied with the status quo, you will be ambitious and try to innovate the cauldron. , Reorganizing the official administration will inevitably cause chaos and heated debate in the world, shaking the foundation of the empire."
"The people can follow it, but they cannot know it." This is the words of Confucius. Since the Han Dynasty, it has been regarded as a guideline by kings of all dynasties as the basis for governing.
The meaning of this statement is very simple. As common people, they only need to obey the orders of the rulers. They must not be allowed to know the "why". Because knowing the "why", you will understand that the essence of the dynasty is nothing more than the ruler's attachment to the people, sucking their bones and exploiting them. Who can bear the extravagant life of nobles and bureaucrats? There will inevitably be chaos in the world.
In the same way, all New Deals mean the collapse of inherent vested interest groups, depriving them of their benefits and passing them on to those who have not received the benefits. Human greed is unlimited, and those with vested interests are absolutely unwilling to transfer what originally belongs to them. Benefits, those who have newly obtained benefits will look forward to Shu, and realize that it is not impossible to seize benefits, as long as they reform and innovate, right?
The foundation of society is shaken as a result, and the foundation of the empire is in danger of overturning.
Therefore, vested interests throughout the ages hate reforms and innovations. They are indifferent whether the country is rich or not, and whether the military is strong or not. They only know that the social order and power structure cannot be changed, otherwise more and more people will challenge the old order. …
Li Chengqian drank the tea in silence, with a calm face and no change in his expression. He suddenly put down the tea cup, looked up at Li Ji, and asked: "Young Master is the pillar of the country, with both civil and military skills. I have a doubt in my heart that I want to ask... You said, in the Tang Dynasty, When will it be destroyed?"
Li Ji was very surprised. He didn't expect the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty to ask such a taboo question...
What is the emperor thinking about all day long?
Yes, the emperor is a kind-hearted, honest and gentle person. Since he has such "deviant" and "irrelevant" thoughts, he must be influenced by the people around him, and this "people around him" can only be Fang Jun. …
Sure enough, my worries were not unfounded.
But this question was too profound and involved a lot of knowledge. I didn’t know how to deal with it for a while, so I could only say with a smile: "The Tang Dynasty complied with the destiny and punished the people for crimes. In the chaotic times of the late Sui Dynasty, it ended the melee in the world and saved all the people from water and fire. Understand the common people and hang upside down, and the country will naturally continue to prosper and never decline."
"Haha, it's just you and me, the monarch and my minister, here. Just be honest. Why bother with me with words that even a three-year-old child wouldn't believe? King Qin Yingzheng swept away Liuhe and unified China. He thought he had done more than the five emperors. The Three Emperors of Degai, so he called himself the 'Emperor', and he was the first to be called the 'First Emperor', and his descendants continued in the second and third generations for eternity... However, the great Qin Empire died in the second generation after Qin Shihuang, who else Will you believe those endless nonsense?"
"Uh..." Li Ji was speechless.
Li Chengqian held the pot and poured tea for Li Ji, and said with a smile: "Since the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, dynasties have risen and fallen, and imperial power has changed. Whether it is Qin Shihuang, the one emperor through the ages, or the great Han Taizu Emperor Liu Bang, who killed the white snake and conquered the world, or the end of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty Yang Jian in the troubled times of the Southern and Northern Dynasties... These are all outstanding figures of a generation. These dynasties also flourished for a while, but in the end they were inevitably destroyed. It can be seen that for the dynasty, there must be a chronic disease. If If it cannot be eradicated, no matter how powerful the dynasty is for a while, it will not escape the end of destruction...Does your Majesty think so?"
"..." Li Ji was still speechless.
He stretched out his hand to take the tea cup, holding it in his hand, his eyes were dull, and his mind was a little unable to turn around. Has His Majesty now grown to such an extent that he has begun to think about such profound issues?
Li Ji himself had never even thought about this issue.
The Qin Dynasty was tyrannical and imposed excessive taxes. The sudden death of the First Emperor failed to make a smooth transition of imperial power. Li Si and Zhao Gao supported Hu Hai to ascend the throne, and even issued imperial edicts to confer the death of the young master Fu Su, which led to the complete collapse of the central power structure of the Qin Empire. In addition, the Six Kingdoms were not long overthrown. , the remaining nobles of the Six Kingdoms took the opportunity to raise armies and rebel. Kyushu was in chaos and war, and it was natural that they should perish.
At the end of the Han Dynasty, the imperial power declined, and the emperors were all young and in charge of the country. Warlords in various places took the opportunity to rise, and finally surrendered to Cao Wei.
Not long after the fall of the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty's violent conquests and expropriations are still vivid in our minds...
Whenever I think of the collapse of these dynasties, most people blame the last emperor for being incompetent, stupid, or violent. They believe that as long as they don't make those mistakes, the dynasty will naturally last long and be passed down from generation to generation.
Who would think about the necessity?
Li Chengqian sat upright: "Since taking the throne, I have always thought about the collapse of previous dynasties and discovered a pattern. At the beginning of the rise of the dynasty, the old interest groups were broken up, and the benefits seized for generations were redistributed. This is reflected in the fact that everyone in the world has a share of the land. . When the people get the land, they can live and work in peace and contentment as long as they work hard... Therefore, the dynasty in this period will inevitably be politically stable and prosperous. As long as the emperor is not a fool, a prosperous age can often be expected."
Having said this, he paused, took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and felt a little energetic. There were not many opportunities to teach Li Ji...
"But such good days will not last long, because as the country becomes rich and the political situation is stable, the distribution of interests has been fixed, and the upward path for the bottom class has been completely blocked. Natural and man-made disasters are inevitable, and ordinary people may be able to gain through hard work They have the opportunity to settle down and make a living, but their ability to withstand disasters is extremely lacking. Often a serious illness or a natural disaster will wipe out a lifetime of hard work. At this time, it is a good opportunity for the nobles to lend money and lease to seize land and people."
Li Ji nodded silently.
He himself was from a noble family, so why didn't he understand the initial means by which a noble family grew and prospered?
For ordinary people, a natural disaster may mean the destruction of their families; but for aristocratic families, a natural disaster is a feast of plundering land and people.
In the year of disaster, food prices skyrocketed, and noble families owed food to the affected people on credit at ten times the price. When the disaster passed, the year improved, and the land had a bumper harvest, food prices plummeted. When the people repaid their debts, they found that they had to pay ten times the price on credit. To repay the price twice or even a hundred times... the result is naturally not enough.
What should I do if I still can’t?
Either sell the land and then rent the land of the aristocratic family and become a tenant; or sell yourself and become a slave of the aristocratic family...
The aristocratic families grew and prospered in one natural disaster after another, while the common people were destroyed one after another in natural disasters. The government could not even play an effective role in this because both parties acted in accordance with the contract.
This is an endless cycle with no solution...
Li Chengqian moved his body to relieve his paralyzed legs, and continued: "...Year after year, the people lost the land they depended on for survival, and had to become tenants and slaves of the aristocratic families, and the aristocratic families hid these things. Land, population, and corresponding taxes are not paid to the court... The national power declines, the people are in dire straits, and the prosperous times become what they were like at the end of the previous dynasty."
Needless to say what follows, Li Ji himself also knew that the people were forced to survive. With just a little inducement, they would rise up and wars would burn everywhere in China. Countless heroes would emerge at the right moment in the troubled times to lead those who could not survive. The people overthrew the decadent dynasty and established a new dynasty.
As a result, everyone has land to cultivate, official positions to hold, and business to do. The political situation is stable and prosperity can be expected.
A hundred years later, everything comes back...
Li Ji was completely silent.
The rise and fall of dynasties, the change of imperial power, the annexation of land, and wars in troubled times are all recorded in the annals of history. Anyone who has read the book knows that what they are thinking about is how to avoid the harm to the country and the treacherous ministers to the good ministers. How to give advice and how to govern a country with capable officials? Has anyone ever thought deeply about the laws and inevitability of it?
After a while, Li Ji raised his head and saw Li Chengqian's eyes burning brightly. He asked, "Has your Majesty thought of a way to break this reincarnation?"
Li Chengqian excitedly made a fist with his left hand and hammered the palm of his right hand: "That's exactly it!"
Now even Li Ji couldn't help but be curious, and straightened his posture: "Your Majesty, please enlighten me!"
Li Chengqian said: "Actually, it's very simple. The chronic disease of everything lies in the land. Family members and dignitaries are desperately trying to annex land to strengthen their power and consolidate their foundation; while the people lose their land when they lose it. The two are tit-for-tat and absolutely contradictory... If we want to solve this endless cycle, we must decentralize the role of land."
Li Ji was stunned: "Turn away the function of land...?"
What is land? For thousands of years, all book truths and life experiences have told people that land is the basis of survival. No matter how much money or high officials are, they cannot guarantee people's survival. Only the food grown on the land can.
And food is everything.
How does this change?
Li Chengqian's face was slightly rosy, and his eyes were a little fanatical: "Let the aristocratic families feel that land is not the only thing they can pursue, or that there is endless cheap land for them to chase, instead of focusing on the people. At the same time, it allows the people to get rid of the shackles of the land, so that they can still live even if they lose their land."
"..."
Li Ji was a little dizzy. For the first time, the invincible commander who had strategized and won thousands of miles felt that his brain was not enough. He could hear the emperor's words clearly, but he could not understand a word.
